The Coca-Cola Company has made an investment in music licensing start-up, Music Dealers, in a deal that the Atlanta-based soft drink company says will help it source emerging music talent for upcoming global brand campaigns. The agreement between Coca-Cola and Music Dealers includes a guaranteed commitment by Coca-Cola to use the services of Music Dealers to discover and license music from currently trending bands all over the world. The investment will give Coca-Cola a minority share in the company, which was started in 2008 and today works with over 10,000 artists worldwide.

"We are excited about the opportunities that come from partnering the world's most valuable brand with an innovative and game-changing start up and the potential ripple effect that can come of it," said Emmanuel Seuge, Group Director, Worldwide Sports and Entertainment Marketing, The Coca-Cola Company. "Especially for the thousands of emerging artists around the world who are looking for a global platform to launch their music."

Executives at Music Dealers say that the deal is about more than a typical investment and that the network's emerging talent will benefit from Coca-Cola's scale and marketing.

"Our values are perfectly aligned -- we aim to promote independent artists and share their music with fans around the world," added Eric Sheinkop, Music Dealers President. "The Coca-Cola Company is a great partner who offers solid support to our artists. When artists record a track for Coke, they put significant marketing leverage behind it. The song gets more exposure worldwide than even big artists get from a record label. This arrangement has literally helped artists launch their careers."

Coca-Cola will work closely with Music Dealers to source music, artists and lyrics for a variety of brand campaigns, programs and events; including becoming the key music sourcing partner for "Coca-Cola Music" which reaches 140 countries.

"Music Dealers offers numerous avenues to discover and secure music that is a perfect fit for a brand or project," explained Eric Sheinkop. "Coke is an excellent partner. Their creativity for designing new promotions makes the work exciting for everyone."

"The deal with Music Dealers is one example of how we are evolving our approach to partnerships, leveraging our scale to achieve shared value and bottom line efficiencies for both parties," added Emmanuel Seuge. "Through our close collaboration we gain a strong partner in the music industry that has the knowledge, credibility and access to help us continue to build and activate global music programs in the most relevant and compelling ways."